Have A Very Minimalist Holiday

If you have spent the year de-cluttering, you may be panicking about the upcoming holidays and the onslaught of gifts poised to invade your home. The serenity you feel when you open a tidy drawer or walk through a room without tripping over detritus is about to be obliterated in one tsunami of wrapping paper. How do you preserve your neat home and prevent holiday gifts from hijacking all the space you just liberated?  Below are a few tips to strengthen your efforts at minimalism: 

Go Through Kids’ Stuff

Invite your child to go through their belongings and select five items to donate to another child. Giving them a specific number makes the decision easier. You are teaching your child the life-long skill of deciding which possessions give them joy and which don’t. You are also clearing space for holiday gifts and showing them that giving things to others can make them happy. 

Create Space

Lead by example and clear out your own bookshelves and closets. Share with your child that you are going through the same process of donating items that you no longer need. A good rule of thumb is to get rid of the same number of items that you bring in; five in, five out. Make a plan for where gifts will reside in your home. The goal is to get to the other side of the holidays without feeling resentful and frustrated about overflowing shelves and closet doors that won’t close. 

Decorating and Meals

Reserve your energy, time and money by reducing the scale of your holiday. Decorate less, cook uncomplicated meals and adhere to your budget. Remember if you buy more holiday decorations this year, you will have to store them for then next 11 months. If you are dreading a holiday task, such as hanging the lights off of the gutters, just don’t do it. Give your family a heads up that you will be making one, not three, different types cookies and that you are looking forward to participating in game night this year instead of toiling away in the kitchen. Use the holidays to enjoy what is most meaningful to you.

Less is More

Imagine how unburdened you will feel when you aren’t tasked with integrating a pile of new belongings into your post-holiday home. When you love what you own and have fewer belongings to keep track of, you will have more freedom to pursue a meaningful life. Although it is counterintuitive in our consumer culture, having fewer possessions can lead to greater fulfillment. 

Minimalist Gifts

How much room do you really have to integrate new gifts into your home? If the answer is none, there are many excellent options that will have a net-zero impact on your home. Consider giving consumables such as fruit, certificates for experiences, or items that are useful like jewelry or a bike. When giving to friends, relatives and co-workers, follow this same philosophy. They will appreciate that you aren’t adding to their own clutter. And skip the gift exchange.

Get Your Family on Board

Ask your immediate family to use the same minimalist guidelines when exchanging gifts. If you are the only one working towards minimalism, you will lose the battle. Start off with your own wish list of gift ideas. Then help family members make theirs, using the suggestions below as a starting point. 

Here is a list of minimalist gift ideas for different ages:

Young Kids

Create a photo book of extended family

Record yourself reading a book for your grandchildren 

Establish a savings account along with an ice cream gift card

Bath crayons or other art supplies

Zoo membership

Teenagers

Hamilton tickets

Certificate for an adventure such as sky diving, skiing or on a zip line

Gas gift card

Restaurant gift cards

Movie gift card

Women in Your life

Frame children’s artwork 

Family photo session 

Subscription for online music, media or literature 

Certificate for pedicure or massage

Concert tickets

Men in Your Life

Subscription for beer of the month

Tickets to a sporting event

Rounds of golf at their favorite course

Certificate to clean out his car

Contribute to a cause they care about

For Friends & Extended Family

Donation to an organization they support

A cactus or orchid

Nice lotions

Personalized or unique luggage tags

Certificate for a cooking class

Consider forgoing gifts altogether this year and plan a travel adventure that everyone will enjoy. And of course, a letter telling someone why you love or respect them is the most treasured gift of all.